Since its launch in 2001 Ashley Madison has always been a controversial dating network. In 2009, NBC banned an Ashley Madison ad from appearing in Super Bowl XLIII. Ashley-Madison-Boss Biderman described the banning as ridiculous, stating that the NFL allows advertisements for alcohol, even though alcohol causes thousands of deaths every year.
In the same year, Ashley Madison attempted to purchase $200,000 worth of advertising on Toronto Transit Commission streetcars. The plan was rejected after five of the six committee members voted against it. If approved, 10 streetcars would have been skinned with Ashley Madison's slogan "Life is short. Have an affair". After this deal was rejected, Biderman offered to subsidize ticket prices by 25 cents if the deal went through. This would have reduced the ticket rate to $2.50. The TTC's refusal to take Ashley Madison advertising was made more controversial after the February 2010 admission by the Chair of the TTC, Adam Giambrone, that he himself had several times cheated on his long-time girlfriend. The admission caused Giambrone to cancel a planned campaign for mayor of Toronto but has not changed the TTC's policy on the ads.
In 2010, the company approached the city of Phoenix with an offer of $10 million to rename the Sky Harbor Airport to Ashley Madison Airport over a five-year period. Even though the city was in financial trouble, it rejected the offer.
On June 10, 2010, Ashley Madison made an offer to rename New Meadowlands Stadium to AshleyMadison.com Stadium. The deal was rejected.
Tags: Ashley Madison Phoenix, Toronto, New Meadowlands Stadium
